WHILE congratulating Enugu
Rangers a few weeks ago on their Nigeria Premier League title triumph after a
32-year wait, I admonished the club management to “seize the moment” to begin
the process of privatizing and commercializing the football club in order to
guarantee a sustainable financial future.
Unfortunately, it appears
that is the last thing on their minds now as everyone around the club is
jostling for a piece of the action when they go continental next season. Pity.
The exact opposite is the case
with Stationery Stores of Lagos. Effectively defunct as a football club and
existing only in name and in the minds of its die-hard supporters, the Flaming
Flamingos are fighting to rise up again.
Last Saturday at the Legacy
Pitch of the National Stadium in Lagos, I was chairman of the occasion as
Stores presented awards to several people, some post-humously, who contributed
to making them a household name in Nigerian football. But before the awards
ceremony, officials from Lagos State Ministry of Commerce inaugurated the
Stationery Stores Supporters Trust which has the objective of launching a
contributory scheme for the financial benefit of its members.
Three officials, Pastor
Eliashib Ime-James (national president), Yomi Opakunle (national secretary) and
Soji Akintola (national treasurer) were sworn in as the first executives of the
Trust on a two-year tenure. As laudable as the Trust initiative is, it would
definitely have met with greater enthusiasm if it had happened when Stationery Stores
were at their peak.
That is a lesson that I hope Rangers will learn: To make
hay while the sun shines.
Back to the Stores awards,
I was greatly honoured to chair an event where the first executive governor of
Lagos State, Alhaji Lateef Jakande was an award recipient for the pivotal role
he played in restoring the Onikan Stadium as home ground for Stationery Stores
in 1982. Jakande who is also one of the living legends of Nigerian journalism
(he edited the Nigerian Tribune in the early years of the publication)
attended the ceremony with his wife, Alhaja Abimbola and it was my privilege to
invite him to do the ceremonial kick-off for the second half of the event’s
commemorative football match. Looking towards me, Baba Kekere who is 87
years now asked: “When am I to kick the ball?” “Please, do so right now, sir,”
I prompted and he responded to great applause.
Another award recipient was
Mr. Peter Osugo, the doyen of Nigerian sports journalism who wrote under the
pen name, PECOS, and was credited with giving the Nigerian national team
nickname, Green Eagles. Now also 87 years, PECOS received an award as the First
Team Manager of Stores in their hey days.
Yet another award recipient
was Mr. Segun Adenuga, also a veteran journalist of repute who played a key
role in Store’s league title win of 1992. I will write about Adenuga’s deeply
interesting story in this column very soon. Watch out, don’t miss it.
Also present at the event
was Kunle Solaja, football historian extraordinaire and, of course, my humble
self. It was indeed a coming together of journalists from different
generations.
There were also several
Stores players at the awards whom I had interviewed and written about as a Complete
Football reporter in the late 1980s and early ‘90s. Taiwo Oloyede,
Ifeanyi Aghenu, Sunday Ilevbare, Collins “Barbed Wire” Ebitimi. They were all
part of the 1992 League winning side that was financed by a certain “Mr.
Anonymous,” Snr. Evangelist Lawrence Olusola Idowu who also received an award
on Saturday. What a nostalgic day. I enjoyed myself thoroughly.
Some Stores fans seized on
the event to agitate for the return of their beloved club to the Nigerian
League. They displayed placards and sang songs in praise of the Adebajo family
whose late patriarch, Isreal Adebajo founded the club in 1958.
Two of Adebajo’s grown sons
Gbenga and Tilewa were present on Saturday and heard the cries of the
supporters club first hand. The challenge is theirs to support their father’s
legacy and keep the Flaming Flamingoes going strong. From all indications, the
supportership base of Super Stores is as strong and passionate as ever.
Gbogbo wa l’ore Adebajo (We’re
all friends of Adebajo). So, when I say, Super Stores!!! You say, International!!!
Sincerely wish we could have Stationery Stores back in the premier league. Launch a trust fund towards this effort and and you'll be amazed at how well it will be received. Still my number one club.
ReplyDeleteRunning football takes a lot of money, time and espirit de corps. This was why some of us had thought Mr. Tilewa would allow outsiders to manage the club. Those who are not tainted by the Adebajo family feud, and who are ready to pump a lot of money in and possibly take the club public so that shares can be sold. Some of us who went through all manner of hazards in our youth because of Super Stores don't like the state of our darling club today
ReplyDeleteStationery Stores !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
ReplyDelete